Search the letters

The Vaughan Williams Foundation has made over 5000 items freely available: chiefly letters from Ralph Vaughan Williams, but including some responses which shed light on the subject matter, and also a number of letters from Adeline and Ursula Vaughan Williams. These provide further information and often include messages or observations from Ralph, and there are also letters from Adeline and Ursula written on behalf of the couple. The text of letters written by RVW and UVW remain the copyright of the Foundation.

Searching:
The letters are in tabular form and can be sorted by column, or filtered by any keyword including name, musical title, year or subject (singly or in combination). Partial matches will also be found, e.g. searching “sky” will also find “Stravinsky”. To search for a phrase use inverted commas, e.g. “New York”.

To search by letter number, include the prefix VWL, e.g. VWL123.

Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL730 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian and Ann Boult 19350607 [7 June 1935]
VWL4891 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Fletcher 19350607 June 7 [1940s?]
VWL728 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Longman 19350607 [7 June 1935]
VWL722 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Edward German 19350607 June 7 [1935]
VWL723 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Goldsbrough 19350607 June 7 [1935]
VWL725 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19350607 June 7 [1935]
VWL726 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19350607 June 6 [1935]
VWL729 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19350607 June 7 [1935]
VWL717 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19350603 June 3 [1935]
VWL546 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 193506-- [June 1935]
VWL4095 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr and Mrs Martin Shaw 193506-- [June 1935]
VWL707 Letter from Clive Wigram to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19350517 17th. May, 1935.
VWL706 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19350510 May 10 [1935]
VWL4604 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 19350510 May 10 [1935]
VWL718 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19350506 [6th June 1935]
VWL3250 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 193505-- Monday night [May 1935?]
VWL3867 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193505-- [May 1935]
VWL545 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 193505-- Friday [?May 1935]
VWL563 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 193505-- [May 1935]
VWL4143 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher le Fleming 19350425 April 25 [?1935]
VWL704 Letter from Adrian Boult to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19350422 22/4/35.
VWL4614 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to L.P. Pells 19350419 April 19 [1935]
VWL3866 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19350417 [late April 1935]
VWL700 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19350415 April 15 [1935]
VWL419 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19350414 Sunday [14th April 1935]
VWL416 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19350413 13 April l935
VWL4610 Letter from Patrick Hadley and Henry Balfour Gardiner to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19350412 12 April 1935
VWL4603 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Western 19350411 April 11th, [1935]
VWL316 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19350409 April 9th [1935]
VWL3649 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19350409 April 9 [ca 1935]

You have never lost your invention but it has not developed enough.  Your best – your most original and beautiful style or ‘atmosphere’ is an indescribable sort of feeling as if one was listening to very lovely lyrical poetry.

GUSTAV HOLST letter to RVW 1903

He was one of the most 'complete' men I have ever known. He loved life, he loved work and his interest in all music was unquenchable and insatiable.

SIR JOHN BARBIROLLI, conductor

I was thunderstruck by the symphony last night - and hadn't expected to be. Jagged, pulsating and angry, from that very first clanging dissonance - how can it have come from the same source as the Tallis Fantasia?

AUDIENCE MEMBER, Newbury Festival